Sports: 2006 MLB World Series Prediction

The 2006 MLB World Series matches up the Detroit Tigers vs. St. Louis Cardinals in a David vs. Goliath matchup. The Tigers were the best team in the AL through most of the season, only falling to a wild card and merely 95 wins due to a late-season slump. They dumped the favored Yankees 3-1 in the ALDS and the A's 4-0 in the ALCS. The Cardinals won only 83 games during the season, almost blowing an insurmountable division lead to the Astros over the last two weeks, but recovered to beat the Padres and Mets in the NL Playoffs. Everyone is picking the Tigers.

I agree with the conventional wisdom, as the Tigers are superior to the Cards in the starting rotation, bullpen, and batting order. However, though the Cards are not the equal to the Tigers in any of these areas, they do have the strength in the starting rotation with Carpenter as their ace, Suppan as a clutch pitcher, and Reyes as a rookie with good enough stuff to shut down a lineup. The Tigers have the superior rotation, but three of their four starters are very young, and veteran Kenny Rogers has had some postseason difficulties prior to this year. The heart of the Cardinals order is equal to the Tigers, and they have the best player in the series in Pujols. The Tigers hitting advantage comes from superior complementary players such as Inge, Casey and Granderson. The Tigers have the superior and more experienced bullpen, particularly if Zumaya is healthy. However, experience of a different sort will play a part in the Series. The Cards have experience playing in a World Series, as they participated in the 2004 Fall Classic where they served as cannon fodder for the Red Sox. Being able to concentrate and not let nerves get to you is a huge part of succeeding in sports, and the Cards should have an advantage in this area. The key to the series is whether St. Louis can take one of the first two matchups in Detroit, as the series will head back to St. Louis for the middle three games after that and Carpenter and Suppan are expected to start games 3 and 4. If St. Louis can steal a win in Detroit, they will have a fighting chance. Look for a split in Detroit, the first two games in St. Louis to be split, but for the Tigers to defeat the Cards rookie Reyes in game 5 and finish off the Series in Detroit in front of the home fans in the sixth game because there is no way Jeff Weaver wins an elimination game.

Prediction: Tigers over Cardinals 4 games to 2